A TOURISMPERSPECTIVE OF THE STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS

2015

PRESENTATION TO COMMITTEE ON TOURISM

Joyce Ntuli Researcher

OVERVIEW

• Current unemployment rate 24.3 per cent from 25.1 per cent in the better

part of the year.

• 3 per cent direct GDP contribution in 2013, 645 000 jobs.

• Total contribution 9.5 per cent (R323 billion)GDP contribution in 2013, 1.4

million jobs.

• WTTC forecasts total tourism contribution to R478.8 billion by 2024

• 2013 travel and tourism Investment in 2013, R56.8 billion. Accounting for

8.6 per cent of total South African Investment.

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PROGRESS IN TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

Area of Significance

Resolving the Energy Challenge

More effective Implementation of higher impact Industrial Policy Action

State Procurement from SMMEs Appropriate Categories

Current Status

Responsible Tourism Manual.2002 Imvelo Awards for Responsible Tourism

(FEDHASA). Lilizela awards. Hotel Energy Solutions.

Tourism Incentive Programme visa v Tourism Incentive Fund

Opportunity for the Department to intensify on the skills Development. TGCSA

opportunity for grading of establishment. 30 day payment period adherence

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PROGRESS IN TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

Area of Significance

Unlocking Potential for SMMEs, Cooperatives, Township and Rural

Enterprises

Skills Development and the youth incentives programme

Prioritising Visa Regulations review

Current Status

Tourism Enterprise Partnership (TEP) support programmes on skills and

business Development. Tourism Incentive Programme.

Tourism and hospitality programmes that speak to skills shortages.

Global appreciation on SONA announcement Conflicting views on the Review of Visa regulation. Expansion on

process centres

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PROGRESS IN TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

Area of Significance

Encourage Private sector Investment

Labour issues (Workplace Conflict and Minimum wages Bill)

Operation Phakisa Oceans Economy

Current Status

The private sector has vastly invested in cities as it makes business sense.

Incentives for investment in rural tourism infrastructure.

Hospitality industry minimum wages which are improved yearly. Working conditions

within the tourism sector. Youth employment incentive.

Cruise tourism abandoned as the Department felt it was not feasible.

Resuscitate investigations for cruise tourism benefits

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PROGRESS IN TOURISM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

Area of Significance

Transport and tourism

Fight against corruption

Back to basics programme

Current Status

Poor road infrastructure in certain areas of tourism significance. Tour operators permit processes

riddled by corruption and take longer. Accessibility of the car rental segment by HDIs. Airlifting.

EPWP projects have been better managed, SAT audit query.

lack of maintenance of recreation facilities in many local municipalities, reprioritisation of tourism

funding in struggling municipalities and less skilled personnel.

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• After the enactment of the Bill, the National Department of Tourism needs to revise the 2020 targets set in the National Tourism Sector Strategy and project them for 2030 to align tourism with the National Development Plan (NDP).

• The Portfolio Committee needs to engage the Department of Economic Development to ascertain the roll-out of the youth employment incentives and how tourism will benefit from this initiative.

• On a more permanent basis, a “Tourism Graduate Placement Programme” needs to be developed for the tourism industry to avoid a long list of tourism graduates that await placement after they have finished the theoretical aspects of their training.

• That continued lobbying for high level interventions is required to assist the Yamoussoukro Declaration (YD) in fulfilling its objectives as existing bilaterals in other countries are a hindrance to the YD objective.

RECOMMENDATIONS

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• South African Tourism and the Department need to intensify marketing

initiatives locally and abroad and consider all market segments in order to sustain the growth trajectory in tourist arrivals.

• To ensure effective and efficient use of public funds a deeper analysis of the value for money should be conducted to avoid duplication and wastage of public funds.

• The skills challenge calls for a dialogue between the National Department of Tourism, Department of Basic Education, Department of Higher Learning and CATHSSETA on determining appropriate curriculum that will improve tourism education.

• The Department needs to present their role and how they will ensure and align the Programmes of the Department for the attainment of goals set in the State of the Nation Address.

RECOMMENDATIONS Cont.

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RECOMMENDATIONS Cont.

• The National Department of Tourism needs to work closely with the private

sector and CATHSSETA to develop a “Graduate Placement Programme” for

tourism graduates.

• Continued effort on ensuring transformation of the industry is required as

there are positive spin offs from transformation.

• Parliament also needs to raise questions related to the community tourism

projects that have been implemented;

– Why certain projects have been abandoned and what are the measures that

have been employed in recovering the investments in those projects?

– How many of these projects are being resuscitated? And

– What criteria is being used to avoid oversaturation of certain products in certain

areas?9

RECOMMENDATIONS Cont.

• Parliament needs to continuously agitate for intergovernmental relations with sister Departments and other spheres of Government.

• Parliament needs to find a way where possible to have joint meetings with committees such as Home Affairs, Transport, Environment, Small Business Development and any other committee which may have indirect consequences to the work of the Tourism Committee.

• Regulations for the new Act have not been drafted and Parliament should treat this as a priority in order to assist in the flow of programmes in the Department.

• Parliament must continue to closely monitor the EPWP projects, and also to advance questions in relation to the following: the time-frames of projects, which projects have been completed, what plans there are for future projects and whether these projects have been equipped for sustainability post-handover.

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RECOMMENDATIONS Cont.

• Parliament must continue to engage the Department of Tourism on measures being employed to promote cultural tourism, and what the developments are, in attracting investors for infrastructure developments in the rural areas.

• Parliament needs to conduct extensive oversight over the implementation framework of the Tourism Incentive Programme

• Access to the tourism industry by historically disadvantaged individuals (HDIs) is still an important issue that needs to be addressed. Parliament thus needs to determine; 

– What measures are being employed by the Department of Tourism to assist HDIs in accessing this sector,

– What support programmes are employed to ensure the sustainability of such programmes.

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Thank You

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